The Great Commission: A Closer Look at Why Discipleship Cannot Be Ignored - Softcover

Inhaltsangabe

Dear reader,

It is my great honor to bring The Great Commission to your attention. It reminds us to think of radical discipleship and spiritual transformation.

I am confident that the book will convince you that the Great Commission cannot be evaded. It is still in effect today. Hudson Taylor said: “The Great Commission is not an option to be considered; it is a command to be obeyed.” Moreover, David Livingstone said: “If a commission by an earthly king is considered an honor, how can a commission by a Heavenly King be considered a sacrifice?” Therefore, it is an honor to make disciples for our King Jesus. Howard Hendricks, in the foreword to “Disciples, are Made not Born,” wrote: “‘Make disciples’ is the mandate of the Master (Matthew 28:19–20). We may ignore it, but we cannot evade it.” The questions for us today are: What are we doing? Are we ignoring it?

Richard Foster explains: “Perhaps the greatest malady in the Church today is converts to Christ who are not disciples of Christ—a clear contradiction in terms. This malady affects everything in church life.” And Dallas Willard, an expert in spiritual formation, writes: “The last command Jesus gave the Church before he ascended to heaven was the Great Commission, the call for Christians to “make disciples of all the nations.” But Christians have responded by making “Christians,” not “disciples.” This has been the Church’s Great Omission.”

I am confident that you agree with me that we are challenged to reverse this OMISSION. For the first century Christians, the Great Commission was not a choice to consider but a command to obey. Should we continue to perpetuate the current statistics or decide to obey God? You and I have an option to make. Making disciples should be the driving force of everything the local Church is doing.

Discipleship is the greatest need of the Church. Churches need to refocus their attention on mature disciples, not just better programs. The truth is that only radical obedient discipleship is leading believers to maturity.

In this book, you will discover the Great Commission's four dimensions and provide you with multiple tools to make disciples.

The four dimensions are:

1. Make Disciples
2. Power Evangelism
3. Christ—the Highest Revelation
4. Spiritual Growth for every category of believers

George Barna underlines the problem of the contemporary Church: “Discipleship is not a program. It is not a ministry. It is a life-long commitment to a lifestyle.”

The Third Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization concluded with two significant needs:

• The need for radical obedient discipleship, leading to maturity, to grow in-depth as well as in numbers;
• The need for radical cross-centered reconciliation, leading to unity, to grow in love as well as in faith and hope.

Ultimately, it is all about Jesus, and Jesus is all about discipleship for us as Christians. The Great Commission challenges all of us to think about radical discipleship and spiritual transformation; to think spiritual growth and maturity; to think multiplication and spiritual reproduction.

I wholeheartedly invite you to pray that Christians worldwide will get out of their comfort zone of lukewarm religion and become disciples, get adequately equipped, and start making disciples. I am fascinated by Paul’s faithfulness before his martyrdom to transfer his godly legacy to his son in the faith—Timothy. He wrote: “The things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, entrust these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also” (2 Timothy 2:2). Should we do less than that? You be the judge.

Christ will soon return, and He expects to find many mature disciples—a people transformed into His likeness. Until then, by God’s grace, let’s make disciples and equip them for the Kingdom of God.

May God bless you all!

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